Running into Love
by heartnut
Summary: An AU fic focusing on what could have occurred in the First Season... had Usagi and Mamoru continued to 'bump' into each other... why is Usagi calling Tuxedo Kamen Mamoru?


&

**_Running into Love_**  
by: heartnut  
&

**_  
In this alternate reality story, Mamoru knows that he is Tuxedo Kamen, even though the Rainbow Crystals haven't been discovered yet._**

_text_ _in italics are thoughts_

&

"Gomen nasai..." Tsukino Usagi muttered under her breath as she picked herself up from yet another head-on collision with someone on her way to school. This was her second one this week... and it was only Tuesday! She shook her head to clear it, and opened her eyes to see two midnight blue orbs looking back at her, full of confusion.

"Why do I feel like we've done this before, Odango Atama?" Mamoru asked as he picked himself up from the sidewalk, his eyes conveying frustration and dismay. "Are you late for school yet again?" He dusted off his gray slacks and straightened his green jacket as well, not even bothering to help the junior high girl to her feet. Mamoru crossed his arms in an effort to look mad, though he was secretly pleased he had run into Usagi.

"For your information, Mamoru-Baka, I 'am' on my way to school, and I would have been right on time if YOU hadn't been in my way!" Usagi quickly reached for her brooch, which had mysteriously fallen off her uniform's bow and quickly stood up, flying past Mamoru with a burst of speed that could only belong to a superhero. _I thought I pinned it on this morning? Maybe I forgot the latch... He's so AGGRIVATING! Why am I always running into him? Not that I mind all that much... he IS rather handsome..._ Usagi continued her thoughts all the way to school.

Back at their site of frequent collision, Mamoru blinked with confusion. _That's the fifth time that Odango Atama has run into me or hit me with something in two weeks... Why do we keep running into each other... and why am I keeping count? I need to get my coffee..._ Mamoru shook his head and resumed his walk to the Crown for his daily ritual. 

&

Usagi ran into the classroom ten seconds after the bell rang, hoping to make it to her seat without Haruna seeing her. She was two feet away from her desk when:

"Tsukino Usagi! You're late again! You have detention this afternoon!" Haruna-Sensei was already out to get her today.

Usagi mentally sighed, and sat down, saying, "Hai, Haruna-Sensei..."

Usagi's best friend, Naru, who was sitting right next to her, leaned over and asked, "What's the deal today, Usagi-chan? You look so tired...is there anything I can do to help?"

_Only if you can keep that Mamoru out of my way in the mornings..._ _He is making me late everyday!_ Usagi sighed and whispered back, "Not really, Naru-chan. But thank you anyway."

&

"Konnichi-wa, Mamoru-kun! Having a good morning?" Furuhata Motoki turned around from his position behind the counter at the Crown Arcade and poured a cup of coffee for his friend. He set it down in front of him and put his full attention on his friend.

"Konnichi-wa, Motoki-kun. No comment." Mamoru said softly, his eyes downcast at the counter. He sipped his coffee in silence, not wanting to say anything, but Motoki wasn't about to let that happen.

"Okay, what's troubling you, Mamoru-kun? Is it school?" Mamoru shook his head no. "Ooookay... I think I know what it is. Is it a gi-iiiiirl?" Motoki asked, with a twinkle in his eye. 

_Kami-sama... why does he have to know 'everything'? I can't bluff this one off anymore_... Mamoru sighed and sipped his coffee before he spoke. "I give up... It never ceases to amaze me at how you can pick my troubles apart after looking at me for ten seconds, Motoki-kun."

_I knew it!_ "So, tell me about her! What's she like?"

"If I tell you anything, you'll know who she is. Besides, there is no hope of me ever being able to be with her as more than a friend, so I would prefer to forget about her..." Mamoru looked into his coffee cup, which was empty. "May I have some more coffee, Motoki-kun?" He held out his empty cup.

Motoki got a twinkle in his eye as he took the cup. "Only if you tell me why you can't go out with this girl, Mamoru..."

"Oh, alright... don't laugh..."  
"I promise."  
"She's ahem five years younger than I am."

Motoki dropped the coffee cup on the floor with a crash. After standing there slack-jawed for about twenty seconds, he recovered his senses and stammered to his best friend, "You're kidding me?"

Mamoru shook his head no. "Iie... I can't get her out of my head..." He put his forehead in his hands and leaned his elbows up on the countertop, looking down onto the marble swirlies.

Motoki leaned closer to the raven-haired man across the counter. "Mamoru... who is she? Who is this goddess who has captured your heart? You've never acted like this before, and I want to help you in some way..."

The hero of Tokyo looked up at his closest friend... his only friend, and sighed. _Might as well tell him, he'll find out sooner or later... _ "This is between you and me, right?" Motoki nodded quickly, and Mamoru took that as a sign to continue. "Uhmmm..." His voice got softer and softer... and softer... "it's... uhmmm... Usagi."

Motoki just stared at him for a brief moment, then regained his senses, remembering what he was doing: helping his friend. "Well, clearly, you shouldn't be near her like that for another four years, so... why don't you try being friends with her until then. After all, relationships are built on friendships." Motoki filled up a fresh cup of coffee and carefully set it in front of his friend. "I'm sure that if she returns the feelings, she'll wait that long to be with you."

"That's just it, Motoki-kun, she doesn't know that I feel this way... in fact, I think... no, I know that she hates me." Mamoru took a gulp of coffee. "And I don't think I have enough guts to tell her how I feel to her face."

"Well, you never know. Love can do some pretty strange things at times. I'll leave you to figure out what to do next, then. I'll see you later, Mamoru-kun, I have to clean up this mess." Motoki walked back to the stockroom to get a broom and a towel to clean up the mess of the fractured coffee cup.

"Thanks for listening, Motoki-kun."

&

Usagi finally stepped out of detention at five o'clock, her hand throbbing from writing five hundred times: "I will always be on time to my classes, as they are the key to my future intellect." for Haruna's choice method of torture. And she had had to do it in English, too! It's hard enough to do in Japanese!

Rei and Ami were waiting for her by the gate to the school; a look of exasperation on Rei's features, and a look of gratitude on Ami's. 

"Finally! We thought you'd never get out of there, Odango Atama!" Rei yelled at Usagi.

"Well, if I hadn't run into Mamoru-BAKA on the way to school this morning, I would have gotten out of school on time. He's ALWAYS in my way!" Usagi yelled back. "I have run into him TWICE this week!" Usagi stepped up to Rei's challenge, ready to start another one of their tongue wars that they were famous for.

"Well, Usagi-chan, if you would like to discontinue the habit, maybe you should find out where he goes every morning, and try to avoid that route from his apartment!" Ami spoke up, trying to put out the fire of the upcoming argument between Moon and Mars. "Then you wouldn't run into him everyday, would you?"

Rei and Usagi's heads swiveled over to where Ami was talking, and just looked at her like she was crazy. Usagi recovered her senses first and exploded. "Nani! Are you KIDDING me? Follow Mamoru-BAKA around at seven o-clock in the morning? Why, I'd have to get up even earlier than I already do to do that!"

A light of wisdom dawned on Rei. "Well, Usagi-chan, if you know his routine, then you'll never have to run into him again, will you? I'd say that never running into Mamoru-san again is good enough reason to get up early for one day, don't you?" _...and then I'll have the studmuffin all to myself..._

Usagi calmed down, seeing the wisdom behind Rei's reasoning, and thought to herself for a minute. _Hmmm..._ _never seeing Mamoru again? How wonderful that would be... wait! Who am I kidding! I LOVE running into him in the mornings! He's SO handsome and dreamy and... but if Rei ever finds out that I feel that way, she'll never let me live it down... Ooooohhhh! He drives me INSANE! Just like Tuxedo Kamen..._

All this took place in about a hundredth of a second in Usagi's brain. Aloud, she said, "Sounds like a plan to me! I'll get up early on Friday to follow him around... that means I'll have to follow him home from the Arcade Thursday after school to find out where he lives, right?"

Ami and Rei nodded; Ami, glad that Usagi was taking control of the situation... and Rei, because she was about to get just what she wanted:

Mamoru all to herself.

&

CRASH! 

"Gomen! Gomen nasai!" Usagi looked up yet again into Mamoru's eyes for the third time in the week. It was Thursday, and she had gotten up fifteen minutes late that morning. _I can't do this tomorrow!_ She thought to herself breathlessly. 

Mamoru looked down at the fallen, disheveled girl on the sidewalk. "Kami-sama, Odan-"

Before he could get any further in the insult, Usagi stood up to her full height and interrupted him, the words flying out of her mouth before she could even think about it.

"My name is U-SAH-GEE! Can you say that, Mamoru? Or is it just too hard for you to get out of your mouth!" _That oh-so-perfectly-shaped mouth... _She stood there, tapping her foot, looking up into his eyes with mock frustration, hiding her true thoughts from him.

Mamoru was stunned. _She's so kawaii when she's mad at me..._ Five seconds later, he rediscovered his vocal cords, and Mamoru shot right back at her: "I know your name! But, I like to call you Odango Atama'! It suits you!" A brief silence followed his last remark, and Mamoru punched himself inwardly. _I can't believe I said that... ALOUD?_

Usagi suddenly didn't care that she was late to school. She just stood there on the sidewalk. _He likes to call me "Odango Atama…_

Mamoru just walked away, knowing that if he stayed any longer, he would say something REALLY stupid. He didn't even say good bye. And Usagi just stood there, frozen in place. 

&

When Usagi finally recovered, she was late to school again that day. However, luck had been on her side, as Haruna-Sensei had let her off without detention. _She must have a date tonight. _Usagi thought as she walked into the Arcade after school. _Just as well, I have to follow Mamoru home today to find out where he lives, and I don't want to miss him!_

Sure enough, there the baka was, sitting on a stool, drinking his coffee at five o'clock in the afternoon, and trying to read a Physics book. Usagi managed to slip into the Arcade and sit in a booth without being noticed, or so she thought, to watch him study.

_His hair is so beautiful, the way it falls over his eyes like that...and his eyes..._ Usagi closed her own eyes for an instant and was able to see them by memory. _I know what they look like, even without seeing his face-to-face... they are so deep_... She sighed softly at the memory, and opened her eyes to see Motoki looking directly back at her from across the table.

"Aaaahhhh! Motoki-kun! Where'd you come from!" Usagi whispered across the table. 

Motoki whispered back, "I'll tell you if you'll tell me why you're whispering, Usagi-chan."

Usagi blushed unconsciously. "Uhmm... because I don't want to disturb the other customers?" _Yeah! That's a good excuse! He'll believe that..._

"Hmm... is there any customer in-par-tic-ular that you don't want to 'disturb'?" he said, drawing out the words. _I know that she likes Mamoru... I just have to get her to admit it, and things will go from there!_ Motoki grinned, knowing that he had caught the rabbit in her own spying operation.

"Uhmm... Iie, not really..."

"C'mon, Usagi-chan... it's not like you're fooling me." He leaned in closer for effect. "I know that you like Mamoru."

Usagi reeled back and just looked at him with astonishment in her eyes. When she regained her voice, she leaned back over the table and whispered fiercely, "NANI! How do you know THAT?"

Motoki just grinned and continued with the same spill he had given Mamoru that morning, only personalized for Usagi's point of view.

&

Mamoru was sitting at the counter at the Arcade that evening, thoroughly enwrapped with Chapter fourteen of his Physics book. _Emc-squared... the speed of light is... light is... my Usako... WHOA! Where'd that come from!_

He reached over and picked up his coffee for a sip and saw her then. There she was, sitting at the back table with Motoki, having a heated conversation. They were leaning over the table and whispering frantically at each other. Every now and them, Motoki would look in his direction with a twinkle in his eye, then delve back into conversation with Usagi.

Mamoru kicked himself inwardly, knowing that twinkle all too well. _Should have known that Motoki would do something this... How could I have been so stupid?_

He hurriedly downed his coffee and closed his book with a snap. _I'm going to leave before things get out of hand here..._ And he did, without a backward glance. If he had looked back, the crowd in the arcade would have seen a tomato-red flush that went from his collar to his hairline...

&

Usagi looked up from the table only to discover that Mamoru had left the Arcade while she had been talking to Motoki.

_Kami-sama! Where'd Mamo-chan go? I have to follow him! _"Bye, Motoki-kun! Thanks for the advice!"

Usagi stood up quickly and bolted out the door, only to find Mamoru about half a block away. She followed him at a safe distance, never getting too close. _Being SailorMoon has its advantages... I know how to walk in stealth…_

After fifteen minutes of Usagi's covert spying operation, Mamoru finally ducked into a high-rise apartment building with over twenty floors. Usagi gasped, while observing him from across the street. _He lives there? I wonder what floor?_

Usagi turned around and made her way home, deeming it not worth it to try to follow him to his apartment. _He would probably see me... and that would be terrible! I wouldn't be able to explain why I was out here..._

She would have to be outside his apartment building at five-thirty the next morning to observe one Chiba Mamoru's morning routine if it killed her...

&

beep beep 

Usagi rolled over in her bed and looked at the clock beside her bed. It read 3:30 AM. She groaned and grabbed for the communicator that was on her night stand.

"What IS it?" She whispered angrily. "I'm sleeping!" Her hair was flowing all around her on the bedspread, a carpet of sunshine even in the darkness of her room.

"Cut the crap, Odango Atama, and get over here to the park!" Mars chided her angrily. "There's a nasty Youma destroying the water fountain!" 

"I'm on my way..." Usagi got out of bed and put on a school uniform quickly, pulling her hair up in its traditional meatballs in record time, just in case the battle took longer than expected. She held out her hand and said with confidence:

**_Moon Prism Power Make-up!_**

In a flash of light and ribbons, SailorMoon stood in Tsukino Usagi's place, ready to preserve peace and justice. She jumped out the window and hightailed it to the park, leaving a sleeping black cat lying on the bedspread.

&

In a high-rise apartment building, Mamoru Chiba jerked awake, a stab of pain pounding in his upper chest unbearably. He gasped as his heart began to beat wildly, threatening to explode in his chest. He quickly swung his legs over the side of the bed and stood up.

Suddenly, there was a flash of golden light, and Tuxedo Kamen stood in the small apartment. He strode to the balcony and jumped down to the ground, running towards the spiritual pull of the one named SailorMoon.

Little did he know how close she was until it was too late...

&

SailorMoon rounded the corner of the wall around the park, where the main entrance was, only to collide with someone coming the opposite direction. _Not again!_

Before he could stop himself, Tuxedo Kamen naturally embraced her to keep her from falling backwards onto the pavement.

SailorMoon then let loose her normal barrage at Mamoru, not even thinking that it possibly wasn't her daily tormentor himself standing in front of her. _Afterall, only Mamoru has a chest that was as hard and muscular and... STOP! This is MAMORU we're talking about!_

While she was voicing these thoughts in her head, SailorMoon vocalized concerns that were along the lines of: "Ooooohhhh... Why can't you watch where you're headed, Mamoru-BAKA! I'm tired of running into..." At this point in her speech, she opened her eyes and looked up to see Tuxedo Kamen looking back down at her, in all his mysterious wonder. 

"You-you-you're not Mamoru..." SailorMoon said, stating the obvious. _But I was so sure that was his chest I ran into..._

"Iie, I'm not. Who is he?" Tuxedo Kamen responded hesitatingly, letting go of her waist to put distance between them. _Does she know who I am? No one has ever made the connection before…_

"Uhhhmmm... it doesn't matter who he is... besides, when I run into this guy, he never thinks to catch me and just lets me fall. Thank you for catching me, Tuxedo Kamen." SailorMoon said, her cheeks blushing unconsciously. 

"No problem, SailorMoon. After all, my mission is to protect you from anything that may destroy you, even if it is..." Tuxedo Kamen broke off, realizing that he had lost her attention. "What is it?"

"Destroy me... Aaaaughh! There's a Youma destroying the fountain in the park! I've got to go!" And with that, she took off past the black-caped hero in search of her fellow scouts.

After a brief hesitation, Tuxedo Kamen ran in hot pursuit of the fuku-ed warrior of justice, thinking, _Now, why was her running off like that so familiar to me... and HOW on EARTH did she know my name?_

&

**_Shabon_** **_Spray!  
Fire Soul!_**

SailorMercury dodged a stream of pink goo from the Youma, only to fly right into SailorMars. 

"Watch it, Mercury! You're going to get us both killed!" The red fuku-ed soldier yelled as she pulled them out of the line of attack.

"Hold it!" Shouted a voice from the darkness. The street lamps magically swiveled to expose SailorMoon standing on a street lamp post, looking down at the fight. "How dare you try to destroy this fountain! Innocent children come here to play everyday! I am SailorMoon, and in the name of the Moon, I'll punish you!"

"It's about time you got here, Moon!" Mars yelled. "We were about to get Youma-dusted!"

She jumped down to the ground and took off her tiara, only to be assaulted by a tentacle of pink goo from the Youma, which encircled itself around her waist and neck, holding her still. "AHHH! ITAAAAAAAIIII! Help!"

The Moon Tiara dropped to the ground as Mercury and Mars looked on in astonishment.

** -----&--- **

"Stop!"

A red rose planted itself between the green eyes of the Youma, momentarily startling the creature into dropping its prize. SailorMoon gasped for breath and reached for her Moon Tiara, putting it back on her head. 

"Sailor Senshi! You must combine your attacks to be effective! Only together can you defeat this Youma!" Tuxedo Kamen announced from his perch on the light post SailorMoon had just vacated.

"Thank you for the advice, Tuxedo Kamen!" SailorMoon shouted back at him. She turned to her fellow soldiers, saying, "You heard him?" They nodded.

**_Shabon...  
Fire...  
Moon Tiara..._**

Spray!  
Soul!  
Action!

The Senshi combined their incredulous attacks into one, the water and fire crystallizing SailorMoon's tiara into a powerful magical weapon. It flew at the Youma, who didn't have a chance. It disintegrated into MoonDust.

SailorMoon jumped up and down, "I did it! I destroyed it!"

"Hey, Odango... don't forget us!" Mars spoke up.

"Hai! We were the ones who froze and melted your Moon Tiara so it would be strong enough, SailorMoon!" Even SailorMercury seemed to be mad at her.

"Nani? Ano... Gomen Nasai. I didn't mean..." SailorMoon ran up to her friends, not noticing Tuxedo Kamen watching in the shadows.

"Just forget it... never mind, Usa... uhm... SailorMoon," the Senshi of Fire said. She leaned in closer and whispered. "You might as well just stay out and wait for him to come out of his apartment now. You don't have enough time to go home now. It's 4:30. You did find out where he lives?"

SailorMoon nodded her head. "I guess so. I found his place... it's a nice building, too! I'll catch you guys later."

"Good luck, SailorMoon!" Mercury said as the leader walked off into the shadows of the park towards Mamoru's apartment.   
&

After leaving the park behind, Usagi had detransformed in an alleyway across the street from Mamoru's apartments. She walked to the park bench nearby and sat down. _I wonder what time Mamoru gets up anyways... Knowing him, he is probably getting up now... He's never late for anything!_

Her thoughts trailed off as she saw Tuxedo Kamen drop down from the roof of the apartment building onto one of the balconies with a swirl of his cape. He looked around, then entered the apartment through the sliding glass door, shutting it behind him and pulling the drape shut.

_Tuxedo Kamen lives in an apartment? No way!_

&**  
**  
Tuxedo Kamen detransformed inside his apartment, wearing only the boxers he had been sleeping in that night. He sat down on the couch, thinking about his "run-in" with SailorMoon that morning. _Now, that was a weird encounter... almost like my daily run-ins with Usako, but there's no way Usako could possibly be SailorMoon! Still... it was strange that SailorMoon talked about me... does she know me in real life? I'm certain I would remember somebody like her if I ever met her..._

Mamoru shook his head, not wanting to devote any more time to the subject until he was fully awake. He went into he bedroom and changed into a pair of jogging pants and a white t-shirt for his morning run, ran his fingers through his hair, and left his apartment for his morning exercise around the park perimeter.

&**  
**  
Mamoru stepped out of the apartment complex thirty minutes after Tuxedo Kamen entered the building through the window, according to Usagi's watch, which now read 5:15. He was wearing a pair of black jogging pants and a white t-shirt.

He turned to the left and started to jog downtown at a steady pace that Usagi was able to keep up with if she kept a steady walking pace. No wonder he's so buff... he must jog every morning!

As she kept distance thirty paces behind him, she resumed her thoughts about her feelings for Mamoru and for Tuxedo Kamen. _I think that I have a problem... I'm in love with both guys. I'm 'sure' I love them both! But, that's not fair to them... or to me... Who am I fooling? It's not like they know about my feelings, anyway... and there's no way they would ever feel the same way about me..._

Mamoru turned to the right and started jogging around the perimeter of the park wall. _What is going on with my life? There's the Odango...Usako... and now there's SailorMoon... and I can't get either of them OUT OF MY HEAD!_

Usagi kept pace, until there was an annoying beeping coming from her bag.

beep beep

Usagi groaned softly, and ducked in an alleyway to answer her communicator, knowing that she wouldn't have time to catch up to Mamoru now. 

"This had better be important, Mars! What is going on? I was following Mamoru-BAKA!" Usagi whispered fiercely into the tiny speaker.

"Oh, stuff it, Odango! There's a Youma on the dock at the park! Book it!" Mars yelled as she switched off her connection.

Usagi sighed. _All in the day of a Superheroine..._ _Where are all these Youma's coming from, anyway? And why do they always choose to appear in the park?_

**_Moon Prism Power, Make-up!  
_**  
Ribbons swirled around the fourteen-year old school girl, transforming her into the Champion of Love and Justice for the second time in six hours. SailorMoon ran out of the alleyway, towards the dock in the park. 

&**  
**  
Mamoru was jogging around the park perimeter wall when he doubled over in pain that seemed to emit directly from his heart. Thankfully, it was early enough that no one was around, so no one saw his involuntary transformation into Tuxedo Kamen. _SailorMoon_ _must be in trouble... I've got to find her... 'There.' That's where she is..._

Tuxedo Kamen ran back the way he came, following an undeniable instinct. He jumped up on the wall for a clearer path to SailorMoon, who he was driven to protect... no matter what. 

&

**_Fire Soul!  
Shabon Spray!  
_**  
This Youma was particularly nasty; it was a giant squid-like creature that shot out bubbles of poisonous ink as its attack. It was on the end of the dock, frantically countering the attacks for Mercury and Mars. 

"Halt! I am SailorMoon, the Champion of Justice! I fight for love and peace, and in the name of the Moon, I will punish you!" SailorMoon had reached the dock, and stood beside her fellow Soldiers, striking a pose. The Soldiers exchanged knowing glances, knowing that they would win the battle.

The Youma just screeched and let fly a barrage of bubbles from its tentacles, hoping to strike at least one of the targets.

They dodged the attack as one, and Mercury whipped out her palmtop. "I'm reading high toxicity levels in those bubbles that Youma is using... don't let them touch you whatever you do! It will eat away your skin, it's got so much acid in it!"

Seeming to hear what the Senshi of Water said, the Squid Youma attacked again with a full spread of toxic bubbles.

As they jumped back out of range again, SailorMoon saw a glint of red light out of the corner of her eye... 

** -----&--- **

"Stop right there! You, who would terrorize innocent people this early in the morning, have no reason to live! I am Tuxedo Kamen, and I will destroy you!" 

Tuxedo Kamen leapt from the shore to a place right in front of the Sailor Soldiers, and conjured half a dozen roses to his right hand. He threw them all at once, hoping to distract the creature long enough for SailorMoon to use her Moon Tiara. He turned and shouted to her, "SailorMoon! Use your tiara! Now!"

She didn't need to be told twice.

**_Moon Tiara Action!_**

As the Youma was dusted, it managed to try one last attack. Tuxedo Kamen never saw it coming...

…but SailorMoon did. As he was pushed into her, she turned into the attack, pulling him off to the left side of the dock into the water. As she hit the water, she saw the bubbles disappear from the air, the magic gone now that the Youma was blasted to oblivion.

Then, she was underwater, still holding onto Tuxedo Kamen's arms tightly, as he was doing the same to hers. The water in that area had to have been at least ten feet in depth, as they were able to look directly at each other without touching the bottom or coming to the surface.

Tuxedo Kamen's eyes widened as he noticed a silvery light emanating from somewhere... he looked down at the bow on her fuku, which prompted her to do the same. She looked down at her outfit and noticed that the broach that held her transformation jewel was glowing with that silvery light... it was detaching itself from her suit! Usagi inwardly shrieked in astonishment, her eyes widened to the size of saucers: _NO! Not now! I thought it was attached! Without the broach, I'm going to detransform back into Usagi, and **Tuxedo Kamen will know who I am!**_

She never got farther than that in her thoughts, as her broach was coming off her outfit, the fuku changing into magical red ribbons before both her and Tuxedo Kamen's eyes. To Usagi's astonishment, one of the ribbons brushed up against Tuxedo Kamen's face, dislodging the mask from its normally immovable position. 

As Usagi saw the mask float away, she let go of his arm and grabbed the mask. At the same time, he reached out his gloved hand to grab the broach that was threatening to fall towards the bottom of the pond, never to be seen again.

Usagi slowly turned and looked back into the eyes of her savior for the first time, her school uniform covering her body, and her golden hair swirling around her in the light current.

Her eyes widened as she discovered who the man behind the cape and tuxedo actually was: the man that she was swooning over in real life. And his eyes did as well... as he discovered that his crush for the past month and the superheroine he was supposed to protect were one and the same.

Identities discovered, they both kicked their way up to the surface, their lungs ready to explode for lack of air.

&**  
**  
"SailorMoon! Where are you!" SailorMars called out frantically. _Don't do this to me, Usagi-chan... I couldn't bear it if you left me... us..._

SailorMoon and Tuxedo Kamen had been underwater for more than two minutes.

"Here they come..." SailorMercury said, putting her Palmtop away after using it to scan for movement in the water.

Sure enough, two human forms burst out of the water into open air, gasping for breath. Mars and Mercury reached down to help them get out, unaware of any change in dress from them until they discovered that their fellow soldier against evil was okay. They sat them down on the edge of the dock next to each other and stood up behind them.

"Usagi! What happened?" SailorMercury asked, astonished at who she saw before her.

"Obviously, Mercury, I detransformed while underwater..." Usagi said slowly. "Is my broach around here somewhere? It fell off my fuku..."

Tuxedo Kamen held up his gloved right hand, which was holding the large pink colored ornament. "Is this what you're looking for?" he asked hoarsely, afraid to look up. Since Mars had pulled him from the lake, he had been looking down at the water, actually scared to look up and reveal his face to Usa-no, SailorMoon! he told himself.

Sailors Mars and Mercury gasped at the sound of the voice that was coming from the man in front of them.

_No way... that voice is way too familiar... that hair... Mamoru is Tuxedo Kamen?_ Rei was beside herself. _Now I'll never have him... he was Usagi's crush way before I even knew I liked Mamoru..._ SailorMars reached out her hand to Mercury, and they exchanged a knowing glance. They backed away silently, their questions going unsaid. They figured that Usagi would explain all the details later, anyway.

Usagi turned to watch them go, then turned back to the hero... the man sitting next to her on the dock.

"Thank you, Tuxedo Kamen..." Usagi reached for the brooch and put it in the pocket of her uniform, making a mental note to get a better clasp for it as soon as she was able. She looked over to him right then, and reached out with her left hand to turn his face towards her. "Here's your mask, if you want to put it back on. I kinda like you better without it, though, if you really want to know." She held up the white opaque-looking mask in her right hand towards the man sitting beside her.

He finally looked into her eyes with those deep blue ocean orbs, and smiled one of those half-hearted smiles of his. "This isn't exactly how I figured that we'd find out each others identities, you know." He gently took the mask from her hand and put it in his jacket pocket as he sat up taller on the side of the dock, his transformation fading away in a flash of golden light. 

Usagi shielded her eyes from the light display. When she uncovered them, Chiba Mamoru sat beside her in his jogging pants and T-shirt. When she found the ability to speak once more, she said, "I wonder if this is why we run into each other all the time, because we're... you know..."

"SailorMoon and Tuxedo Kamen?" Mamoru finished the thought. "I think that may have something to do with it, but I need to tell you how and why I become Tuxedo Kamen before you think differently." Mamoru took a deep breath and started to speak quietly, so Usagi had to strain to hear him. "I can feel it when you transform."

"What do you mean, feel it?" Usagi asked, more confused than ever. 

"I mean... my heart** hurts**... and I keel over from it unless I transform soon after you do. That's what I mean by feel it." Mamoru stood up and looked across the lake at the sun, that was just beginning its trek across the sky. "I don't know why, but I feel this unavoidable need to protect you, SailorMoon... an instinct above all else. Like it's my destiny." Mamoru turned to face Usagi, who was still sitting on the edge of the dock. "Do you know what I mean at all? Or am I crazy?"

"I don't think you're crazy, Mamoru..." Usagi stood up to face the man who had been tormenting her for the past three months, the man she secretly learned to love more than anything else in the world, and took a deep breath. She then said everything at once, along with the tears she had been holding back since she got out of the water: 

"You know, I'm-really-glad-that-we-know-each-other-and-all-cause-now-we-can-talk-about-all-kinds-of-stuff-and-not-have-to-worry-  
about- sniffle -saying-too-much-or-too-little-or-stop-saying-anything-because-we-didn't- sniffle -know-our-identities-and-  
all-and-I-**love**-you-Mamoru-I-mean-Tuxedo-Kamen-I-mean- sniffle -"

And she was suddenly silenced when Mamoru put his hand behind her head and gently pulled her close... then closed the distance between them.

Bliss... indescribable bliss surrounded Usagi as Mamoru embraced her lips, and she floated away to Xanadu for a brief moment. _Wow..._ Tears began to flow down her cheeks at the sheer beauty of the purest feelings that were flooding her mind, a mind that was so inexperienced in the matters of love. The heart then kicked in, using her new-found feelings to move her body closer to him, wrapping herself in him like a blanket of intangible joy.

Mamoru slowly caressed Usagi's lips, somehow knowing that this would be her first kiss. Still, he could not help himself when she pressed herself closer to him, reaching up with her hands to caress his hair. He began to take the simple loving caress to half of the next level, wrapping his arms around her slender frame and pulling her closer to him as well, all the while remembering to be gentle.

Usagi came back to her senses gradually, to find Mamoru still devouring her lips hungrily, and she suddenly knew how to respond, deepening the kiss with a deep gasp for breath.

...and then the wonder of it all stopped, as Mamoru's lips flew away and two fingers came over her lips. He pulled back slightly from her shaking body. "Shhh, Usagi. I love you."

Usagi gasped with quiet pleasure, not sure if she had just heard what she thought she had. "What?"

"I think you heard me, Usagi. I love you." He paused, taking a deep breath. "I don't care if I'm just plain Mamoru or Tuxedo Kamen to you... we're one and the same... I will love you no matter where you are, no matter who you are." _There... I said it! What is going to happen?_

To Mamoru's surprise, tears began to flow once more as her arms wrapped around his waist, and she buried her face in his chest. "Oh, Mamo-chan! I love you, too! I was so scared that you didn't feel the same way!" The tears began to soak into Mamoru's white jogging shirt, though he didn't care at the moment.

Mamoru wrapped his arms around her reflexively, and buried his face in her hair. _She loves me... no one's ever done that before... Mamo-chan?_

"Mamo-chan?" He repeated out loud with a chuckle that came from deep in his chest. "Where did that come from?"

Usagi pulled away slightly, placing her hands on Mamoru's chest and averting her gaze to her nail polish, not looking into his eyes. "Uhmmm... I've secretly called you that in my mind for the past few weeks..."

Mamoru grinned, using his hand to tilt her chin up ever so slightly to look in her tear-brimmed eyes. "Oh, really? Two can play at that game, Usako." There was a twinkle in his eye that hadn't been there five minutes ago.

Before she could voice any objection or displeasure to her new nickname, he leaned down and closed the space between them yet again in a mind-searing, soul-shattering embrace of lips and thought.

"I'm so glad we run into each other... we run into love everyday..."

...and that's how Motoki found them on his way to the Crown that morning...

... two hours later.

&**  
****Fin. **  
&****

_Thank you for reading my fic! Any and all feedback is very much appreciated, and please remember that I do not own SailorMoon, Naoko T. does! She's the one who came up with all the great characters that I took out to play today!_

clr January 16th, 2001

updated Su.12.23.2001

updated again Sa.11.June.2005

re-formatted Sa.23.Sept.2006


End file.
